Peg board display systems have long been popular with retail merchants for displaying merchandise for selection by customers. These peg board display systems typically have a generally upright merchandise display surface made of pegboard that provides a matrix of bored holes through which prongs of hooks and other product support devices can be rearwardly passed. Product support devices are mounted in the matrix of holes at desired positions on the display surface and project forwardly of the display surface.
Recently, many retailers are replacing these pegboard merchandise display apparatus with slat-wall display systems. The slat-wall display system has an upright display surface that is provided with horizontal channels defined in part by upper and lower display surface retention walls with slot defining edges in which product support devices may be mounted. These display systems generally employ merchandise holders each with a base having a lower support member which embraces the lower edge to support the weight of the hook and merchandise and an upper locating member extending rearwardly and upwardly from a point on the base proximate to the lower support member which contacts and bears against the inside surface of the upper retention wall. This structure, shown in FIG. 1, retains the display devices and prevents the base from pitching forward. Such holders are mounted in the display surface slot by first inserting the upper locating member upwardly into the slot until the lower member is located above the lower edge and then lowering the base member until the lower locating member supportingly embraces the lower edge of the slot. Conversely, the holder may be removed from the slot by moving the base upwardly to disengage the lower support member from the lower retention wall edge and then moving the base outwardly and downwardly to withdraw the upper locator member from the channel.
These above-described slat-wall systems are generally neater in appearance than the pegboard systems and offer an advantage of continuous rather than incremental horizontal merchandise position adjustment. However, such slat-wall display apparatus of the prior art also has the disadvantage that the merchandise display holders of these systems may easily become dislodged and fall from the display surface when subject to upward forces which may occur, for example, when a customer removes merchandise from a display hook. Here, inadvertent exertion of a small upward force on the merchandise display holders, such as may occur when merchandise is removed from the holder, may lift the lower locator member from the lower retention wall edge and move it outwardly from the display surface allowing the weight of the merchandise display holder and the remaining merchandise to withdraw the upper locator member from the channel.